By then Tuck was low on fuel and ammunition, so he headed back to Hornchurch. After he landed, his wound was treated by the medical officer, who removed a small duralumin nut that had been knocked off his Spitfire by a German machine-gun bullet. Tuck kept the nut, along with a bent penny, for good luck.

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May 25 found 92 Squadron, again led by Tuck, over Dunkirk. He shared a half credit for a Dornier Do-17 with his flight commander, Brian Kingcome. The squadron returned to Duxford that night for rest and maintenance, ending its part in the Battle of Dunkirk. On June 2, however, Tuck led his squadron against eight Heinkel He-111s, downing one of them as well as one of their Me-109 escorts.

Tuck was sent to Farnborough in southcentral England in June 1940, along with Wing Commander George Stainforth, to take part in comparative trials of a captured Me-109E and a Spitfire Mark II. The tests began with Stainforth flying the Me-109 and Tuck flying the Spitfire in level flight, dives and turns, and at various speeds at different altitudes.

Halfway through the trials the pilots switched planes. Tuck reported that the Me-109 was ‘without a doubt a most delightful little airplane–not as maneuverable as the Spit…but certainly it was slightly faster, and altogether it had a wonderful performance.’ The one thing Tuck got out of the Farnborough trials was the ability to put himself inside the enemy’s cockpit. By learning how his opponents’ hands were working on the controls, he knew how to beat the Messerschmitt.

At a ceremony at Hornchurch on June 28, 1940, Tuck was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) by King George VI for his ‘initiative’ and ‘personal example’ over Dunkirk.

The newly minted ace flew patrols from Pembrey in South Wales over the Bristol Channel looking for German bombers through July and into August. His squadron was then ordered to join Fighter Command’s 11th Group in southeast England. Tuck soon was caught in the middle of the Battle of Britain, shooting down a Junkers Ju-88A bomber on August 13 and two more on August 14.

Tuck was visiting friends at Northolt airfield northeast of London on August 18 when the Luftwaffe launched a major attack on RAF airfields in southeastern England. Refusing to take shelter, Tuck took off and soon encountered two Ju-88s heading back to France at sea level. He chased them out to sea before shooting one down. He then attacked the second bomber head-on. Tuck narrowly avoided a collision, but his Spitfire was hit in the oil and glycol coolant tanks, and half its propeller was shot away.

He managed to nurse his ailing Spitfire back over the coast before its damaged Merlin engine seized up and caught fire, forcing him to bail out. ‘I just grabbed one side with both hands,’ Tuck recalled, ‘hauled myself up and over, and pitched out, head first….As soon as I knew my feet were clear I pulled the ripcord….It seemed to open almost immediately.’ He was barely 500 feet above the ground when he bailed out, and his parachute had just opened when he landed, wrenching his leg. It turned out he had landed on the estate of Lord Cornwallis at Hornsmonden, Kent. His lordship invited Tuck to have tea with his family before he returned to his squadron.

On August 25, Tuck was on patrol with two other pilots when ground control alerted them about a ship under attack in the Bristol Channel. When Tuck and his wingmen approached the area, Tuck spotted a Do-215 bomber and attacked, but before he could fire, the Dornier’s rear gunner raked his Spitfire. Tuck broke off his attack and headed for shore with his Merlin engine shut down. He glided 15 miles before crash landing and ending up against a stone wall.

That was Tuck’s last mission with 92 Squadron. On September 11, he was given command of No. 257 Squadron, stationed at Martlesham, flying Hawker Mark I Hurricane fighters. When Tuck arrived at his new command, he found 257 Squadron’s personnel demoralized, having suffered heavy casualties in July and August 1940 with few air victories to compensate for its losses.

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